Variable torque take-up



1960 J. SCHELLER ETAL 2,959,041

VARIABLE TORQUE TAKE-UP Filed May 28, 1957 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 Fig. 1

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VARIABLE TORQUE TAKE-UP 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 Filed May 28, 1957 Unitd States Patent VARIABLE TORQUE TAKE-UP Joachim Scheller and Wilhelm Ullrnan, Eislingen, Germany; said Scheller assignor to Firma Gebr. Scheller, Textilmaschinenfahrik, Eislingen (Fils), Germany Filed May 28, 1957, Ser. No. 662,253

Claims priority, application Germany May 28, 1956 9 Claims. (Cl. 66-150) The present invention relates to fabric making machines such as textile machines, knitting machines, weaving machines, and the like.

More particularly, the present invention relates to an arrangement for maintaining the take-up roll of such machines upon which the finished fabric is taken up under the proper tension at all times, i.e., an arrangement for constantly applying the correct torque to such a takeup roll.

It is an object of the present invention to provide an arrangement for applying a varying torque to a take-up roll with due regard to the width of the fabric, and/ or the arrangement of the interwoven fibers, and/or the pattern, or any other characteristic, so that the material being taken up will at all times be subjected to the proper tension.

It is another object of the present invention to provide an arrangement for applying a torque to a take-up roll wherein the applied torque is infinitely variable.

It is yet another object of the present invention to provide an arrangement for applying a torque to a take-up roll which arrangement may be built, operated and maintained at low cost.

With the above objects in view, the present invention mainly resides in that improvement in a fabric making machine which comprises a take-up roll for taking up a fabric, electric motor means including a stator and a torque transmitting member adapted to extend into the stator so as to be exposed to and constantly urged to be turned by a rotating electric field during operation of the motor means, the torque transmitting member being mounted for movement relative to the rotating field in such a manner that the torque exerted upon the torque transmitting member is a function of its position in the stator. The torque transmitting member is operatively associated with the take-up roll for constantly maintaining a torque thereon, and operating means independent of the take-up roll are provided which are operatively associated with the torque transmitting member for varying the position thereof in accorda ce with a characteristic of the fabric being taken up y the take-up roll other than the take-up tension. As a result, the torque maintained on the take-up roll and the take-up tension are dependent upon this characteristic of the fabric being taken up thereby.

The novel features which are considered as characteristic for the invention are set forth in particular in the appended claims. The invention itself, however, both as ice Referring now to the drawings and to Fig. 1 thereof in particular, there is shown a take-up roll 11 carried upon a rotatably mounted axle 3. The latter carries a pulley 12 which is power-transmittingly connected to a drive pulley 13 by means of a drive belt 2. If desired, the pulleys 12, 13 may be in the form of sprocket wheels in which case the belt 2 is a sprocket chain.

The pulley 13 is non-rotatably but slidably carried upon the drive shaft 9, which drive shaft is connected to a substantially cup-shaped member the annular side wall portion of which extends into an annular airgap formed between two radially spaced rotor and stator components. Inasmuch as a rotating electric fiield will be induced in the airgap during operation of the motor, the cup-shaped member, which is made of aluminum or other suitable material, will have a torque exerted upon it and will constantly tend to be turned. The cup-shaped member thus acts as a torque transmitting member, and the magnitude of the torque exerted upon it by the rotating electric field will depend upon the axial position of the member relative to the field in the airgap.

The shaft 9 is connected to a connecting rod 8 which, as will be set forth below, is moved in opposite directions so that the shaft 9, and with it the torque transmitting member, will be moved axially relative to the airgap so that by changing the axial position of the shaft 9 the torque exerted upon the take-up roll 11 may be infinitely varied. It will be seen that during axial movement of the shaft 9, the slidably mounted pulley 13 is free to remain in proper alignment with the pulley 12 on the axle 3.

The rod 8 is pivotally connected to a lever 14 which is pivotally mounted at 15. A second lever 6 is also pivotally mounted at 15, the free end of this lever being formed with an elongated slot 6a adapted to receive a pin 16 carried by a nut 4 which is in threaded engagement with a control spindle 5. The lever 14 is formed with a bevel gear 7a, and the lever 6 carries a rotatable shaft 17 which, in turn. carries a hand wheel 10 and a second bevel gear 7 which meshes with the gear 7a. Suitable means, such as a detent arrangement, are provided for preventing rotation of the shaft 17, whenever desired, so that the levers 6 and 14 may be caused to pivot with each other about the pivot 15.

Fig. 1 illustrates the device of the invention as applied to a conventional straight-bar knitting machine in which the width of the fabric produced depends on the length of travel of the yarn carrier 34 past the needles. Movement of the yarn carrier 34 is actuated in a wellknown manner by a reciprocating support rod 35 and is limited by abutment against nuts 4 the relative position of which is controlled by rotation of spindle 5. Manual or automa ic means for rotating the spindle 5 may be provided and do not require further description here.

It will be seen from the above that the axial position of the nut 4 is controlled by the spindle 5 so that the axial position of the torque transmitting member will likewise be controlled bv the spindle 5 by way of the linkage constituted by the levers 6, 14 and the gears 7, 7a. Thus, when the spindle forms a part of the machine which controls the width of the fabric being taken up by the take-up roll 11, the axial position of the torque transmitting member and consequently the torque exerted on the take-up roll will depend upon the width or other condition controlled by the spindle 5.

If desired, the means which prevent rotation of the shaft 17 may be released and the hand wheel 10 be turned. In this way the angular position of the levers 6, 14 relative to each other and consequently the axial positions of the nut 4 and the torque transmitting member relative to each other may be varied.

By virtue of the above arrangement, the torque exer-ted upon the take-up roll 11 will at all times be such that the fabric is taken up at the proper tension. This is particularly important. where the width of the fabric varies appreciably during tthe manufacture of the fabric.

Fig. Zshows an electric motor adapted to be used in a torque applying arrangement according to the present invention. The motor is of the polyphase or rotary current type and includes a housing 22 which supports a stator 21 and a rotor 23 which due to the induced electromotive force rotates at a rate dependent upon the number of poles. The rotor 23 is mounted upon a shaft 24 one end of which is supported bybearings 25, which shaft 24 carries a cooling fan 26 arranged in fan housing 27.

The annular wall portion of a substantially cup-shaped member torque transmitting member 28 projects into the airgap formed between the radially spaced rotor and stator components, and the shaft 9 to which the member 28 is connected is surrounded by a bushing 53 fixed thereto which is rotatably mounted ina bearing 54 and carries pulley 13 for axial movement. The shaft 9 and member 28 may be moved axially as described above in connection with Fig. 1, or the shaft 9 may be formed with a series of spaced rings 30 which constitute a rack meshing with a pinion 31, so that the shaft 9 may be moved axially by rotating the pinion 31, an actuator arm 32 being provided for this purpose and connectable to rod 8. Conversely, when rotation of the pinion 31 is prevented, this will maintain the shaft 9 in any desired. axial position. As set forth above, the member 28 together with the shaft 9 will rotate due to the rotating field induced in the airgap between the rotor and stator components, and the torque exerted upon the member 28 will depend upon how far it extends into the airgap.

According to the present invention, the arm 32 may be turned by rod 8. In any event, the torque exerted upon the take-up roll 11 may thus be so maintained that irrespective of variations of a characteristic of the fabric such as the fabric width, the proper tension will continuously be maintained in the fabric taken up by the roll.

It will be understood that each of the elements described above, or two or more together, may also find a useful application in other types of textile machines differing from the types described above.

While the invention has been illustrated and described as embodied in a take-up arrangement controlled by the fabric width, it is not intended to be limited to the details shown, since various modifications and structural changes may be made without departing in any way from the spirit of the present invention.

Without further analysis, the foregoing will so fully reveal the gist of the present invention that others can by applying current knowledge readily adapt it for various applications without omitting features that, from the standpoint of prior art, fairly constitute essential characteristics of the generic or specific aspects of this invention and, therefore, such adaptations should and are intended to be comprehended within the meaning and range of equivalence of the following claims.

What is claimed as new and desired to be secured by Letters Patent is:

1. In a fabric making machine of the character described, in combination, a take-up roll for taking up a fabric; electric motor means including a stator and a torque transmitting member adapted to extend into said stator so as to be exposed to and constantly tend to be turned by a. rotating electric field during operation of said motor means, said torque transmitting member be ing mounted for movement relative to said rotating field in such a manner that the torque exerted on Said torque transmitting member is a function of its position in said stator, said torque transmitting member being operatively associated with said take-up roll for constantly maintaining a torque thereon; and operating means independent of said take up roll, spaced from the same, and operatively associated with said torque transmitting member for varying the position thereof in accordance with characteristic of the fabric being taken up by said take-up roll other than the take-up tension whereby the torque maintained on said take-up roll and the take-up tension of said fabric is dependent upon said characteristic of the fabric being taken up thereby.

2. The combination defined in claim 1 wherein said characteristic of the fabric is the width thereof and including means adapted to be controlled by the fabric to move between a plurality of positions corresponding to the width of the fabric and operatively connected to said operating means for controlling the same.

3. In a fabric making machine of the character described, in combination, a take-up roll for taking up a fabric; electric motor means including a stator and a torque transmitting member adapted to extend into said stator so as to be exposed to and constantly tend to be turned by a rotating electric field induced in said stator during operation of said motor means, said torque transmitting member being mounted for axial movement relative to said rotating field so that the torque exerted on said torque transmitting member is a function of its axial position in said stator, said torque transmitting member being operatively associated with said take-up roll for constantly maintaining a torque thereon; and operating means independent of said take-up roll, spaced from the same, and operatively associated with said torque transmitting member for varying the axial position thereof in accordance with a characteristic of the fabric being taken up by said take-up roll other than the take-up tension whereby the torque maintained on said take-up roll and the take-up tension of said fabric is dependent upon said characteristic of the fabric being taken up thereby.

4. In a fabric making machine of the character described, in combination, a take-up roll for taking up a fabric; electric motor means including radially spaced rotor and stator components forming an annular airgap between themselves and a substantially cup-shaped torque transmitting member having an annular side wall portion adapted to extend into said airgap so as to be exposed to and constantly tend to be turned by a rotating electric field induced in said airgap during operation of said motor means, said torque transmitting member being mounted for axial movement relative to said rotating field so that the torque exerted on said torque transmitting member is a function of its axial position in said airgap, said torque transmitting member being operatively associated with said take-up roll for constantly maintaining a torque thereon; control means for controlling the width ofthe fabric being made by the machine; and operating means independent of said take-up roll, spaced from the same, and interconnecting said control means and said torque transmitting member for varying the axial position of thelatter in accordance with the width of the fabric as determined by said control means, whereby the torque maintained on said take-up roll and the take-up tension of said fabric is dependent upon the width of the fabric being taken up thereby.

5. In a fabric making machine of the character de scribed, in combination, a take-up roll for taking up a fabric; electric motor means including a stator and a substantially cup-shaped torque transmitting member having an annular side wall portion adapted to extend into said stator so as to be exposed to and constantly tend to be turned by a rotating electric field induced in said stator during operation of said motor means, said torque transmittingmember being mounted for axial movement relative to said rotating field so that the torque exerted on said torque transmitting member is a function of its axial position in said stator, said torque transmitting memher being operatively associated with said take-up roll for constantly maintaining a torque thereon; control means for controlling a characteristic of the fabric being made by the machine other than the take-up tension; and operating means independent of said take-up roll, spaced from the same, and interconnecting said control means and said torque transmitting member for varying the axial position of the latter in accordance with the characteristic of the fabric as determined by said control means, whereby the torque maintained on said take-up roll is dependent upon the characteristic of the fabric being taken up thereby.

6. In a fabric making machine of the character described, in combination, a take-up roll for taking up a fabric; electric motor means including radially spaced rotor and stator components forming an annular airgap between themselves and a substantially cup-shaped torque transmitting member having an annular side wall portion adapted to extend into said airgap so as to be exposed to and constantly tend to be turned by a rotating electric field induced in said airgap during operation of said motor means, said torque transmitting member being mounted for axial movement relative to said rotating field so that the torque exerted on said torque transmitting member is a function of its axial position in said airgap, said torque transmitting member being operatively associated with said take-up roll for constantly maintaining a torque thereon; control means for controlling the width of the fabric being made by the machine, said control means including a control spindle and a nut threadedly engaging said control spindle for axial movement relative thereto during rotation thereof so that the axial position of said nut is dependent upon the width of the fabric as determined by said control means; and linkage means interconnecting said nut and said torque transmitting member for varying the axial position of the latter as a function of the axial position of the former, whereby the torque maintained on said take-up roll and the take-up tension of said fabric is dependent upon the width of the fabric being taken up thereby.

7. In a fabric making machine of the character described, in combination, a take-up roll for taking up a fabric; electric motor means including radially spaced rotor and stator components forming an annular airgap between themselves and a substantially cup-shaped torque transmitting member having an annular side wall portion adapted to exend into said airgap so as to be exposed to and constantly tend to be turned by a rotating electric field induced in said airgap during operation of said motor means, said torque transmitting member being mounted for axial movement relative to said rotating field so that the torque exerted on said torque transmitting member is a function of its axial position in said airgap, said torque transmitting member being operatively associated with said take-up roll for constantly maintaining a torque thereon; control means for controlling the width of the fabric being made by the machine, said control means including a control spindle and a nut threadedly engaging said control spindle for axial movement relative thereto during rotation thereof so that the axial position of said nut is dependent upon the width of the fabric as determined by said control means; linkage means interconnecting said nut and said torque transmitting member for varying the axial position of the latter as a function of the axial position of the former, whereby the torque maintained on said take-up roll and the take-up tension of said fabric is dependent upon the width of the fabric being taken up thereby; and adjusting means operatively associated with said linkage means for varying the axial positions of said nut and said torque transmitting member relative to each other.

8. In a fabric making machine of the character described, in combination, a take-up roll for taking up a fabric; electric motor means including radially spaced rotor and stator components forming an annular airgap between themselves and a substantially cup-shaped torque transmitting member having an annular side wall portion adapted to extend into said airgap so as to be exposed to and constantly tend to be turned by a rotating electric field induced in said airgap during operation of said motor means, said torque transmitting member being mounted for axial movement relative to said rotating field so that the torque exerted on said torque transmitting member is a function of its axial position in said airgap, said torque transmitting member being operatively associated with said take-up roll for constantly maintaining a torque thereon; control means for controlling the width of the fabric being made by the machine, said control means including a control spindle and a nut threadedly engaging said control spindle for axial movement relative thereto during rotation thereof so that the axial position of said nut is dependent upon the width of the fabric as determined by said control means and adjustable linkage means interconnecting said nut and said torque transmitting member for varying the axial position of the latter as a function of the axial position of the former, said linkage means including first and second levers mounted for pivotal movement about the same axis, one of said levers being connected to said torque transmitting member for axially moving the same during pivoting of said one lever and the other of said levers being connected to said nut to be pivoted thereby during axial movement of said nut as a result of rotation of said control spindle, and meshing first and second gears carried by said first and second levers, respectively, for interconnecting said levers to each other so that when rotation of said gears relative to the respective levers is prevented said levers will pivot with each other so that the torque maintained on said take-up roll and the take-up tension of said fabric is dependent upon the width of the fabric being taken up thereby and so that when at least one of said gears is rotated relative to its respective lever the axial positions of said nut and said torque transmitting member relative to each other may be varied.

9. The combination defined in claim 8 wherein one of said gears is fixedly mounted upon its respective lever, wherein the other of said gears is rotatably mounted upon its respective lever, and wherein means are provided for preventing rotation of said other, whenever desired.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 260,574 Irwin July 4, 1882 2,654,236 Clentimack Oct. 6, 1953 2,655,801 Lynam Oct. 20, 1953 FOREIGN PATENTS 712,845 Germany Oct. 27, 1941 

